San Francisco, Calif. (June 9, 2009) — LegalMatch's data resources have revealed that many lawyers are adapting to the staggering economy by following the money. The number of attorneys who have upgraded their LegalMatch memberships to more in-demand areas of law surged by 20 percent in 2008 over 2007. The trend continues in 2009 as potential clients shift their legal needs as the effects of the current recession worsen, and forecasts show that this expansion may double by year end.
The harsh economic climate appears to be behind the growth into more 'in-demand' practice areas. Not surprisingly, the numbers tell the story. Cases presented to LegalMatch seeking lawyers to assist cash-strapped homeowners avoid foreclosure were up 201 percent in 2008 over 2007. Property insurance and automobile insurance related claims were up by 40 percent. Other legal practice areas seeing a considerable rise in cases were medical malpractice, defective products, employment law, and financial related matters such as banking and credit. Landlord and tenant issues have also seen a modest jump of 25 percent because of turmoil in the rental market. In seemingly stark contrast, not-so-glamorous practice areas like trucking/motor carrier and railroad litigation, cases were up an astounding 186 percent and 101 percent, respectively.
Recent Wall Street scandals led by ponzi-schemer Bernard Madoff, along with other corporate misdeeds, has driven securities law cases to post a 37 percent increase with investments related cases up 43 percent.
Cases posted in previously lucrative practice areas such as intellectual property and patent law are on the decline after a decade of robust growth coinciding with new technology and the proliferation of the Internet.
Padideh Rabiola, a family law attorney practicing in Century City, California, has noticed many of her peers shifting their focus to cases involving loan modification and bankruptcy, areas they did not previously service. "It seems everybody and their mother is filing a BK (bankruptcy). There's a huge demand right now," she said. In 2009, LegalMatch projects that member upgrades in bankruptcy law will quadruple again over 2008 figures.
LegalMatch queried its database of over a half million cases for 2007 and 2008 and their member attorneys nationwide to secure these statistics.
LegalMatch (www.LegalMatch.com) is an online legal matching service that makes it easy to find a lawyer. Headquartered in San Francisco with offices in Los Angeles and Austin, LegalMatch helps attorneys nationwide build and grow their law practice. LegalMatch pioneered the online legal matching industry in 1999; the service is free to consumers and available in all fifty states. For more information on LegalMatch, contact Chris Russell-Karazin at (951) 203-1313.